The NA710N

New Jersey voters: did you receive a small spam letter a couple of days ago with some red stars and official-looking logos on it? That’s your sample ballot, and you probably threw it away.

Shame, because this year’s ballot came encrusted in some impressive political gems. Much like in student council elections, gubernatorial candidates are expected to write candidacy statements to go on the ballots, which no one will read. Candidates seem fully aware of the lack of audience for their statements, and that’s where the fun begins. Take a look, for instance, at candidate Gary Stein’s—an independent running with a different slogan in every county— campaign statement. I remind you that these excerpts are from a statement taxpayers’ dollars went into publishing into an official document. If you were looking for yet another reason to love America, take note:

“I could be a useful—I hate to say idiot, if it takes that to jolt the establishment I’m your man. Example: 23 different slogans, one per county; 3 word Sinatra song titles. One of the many tries for media attention. Few blogs helped; the elite media didn’t. Up theirs! If you’re in a protesting mood, who isn’t, you’re not throwing your votes away supporting me. Let’s grab votes from both parties. Send a message. Here’s unorthodoxy— common sense up yours, from one man- (me), and his computer. Give drivers [sic] licenses now to illegal’s (New Jersey issue), secure the border, boycott Mexico, and encourage “undocumented residents” to lead the boycott.”

“Steinforgovernor.com for details. Political sites stink. Why go? See my favorite, “music and variety” on you-tube links. Is my taste impeccable; vote? [sic] 5 months ago I hate no idea this was on the internet, maybe you didn’t? One’s amazing; Al Greens [sic] “Average folks” like us contributed these… you’ll see.”

I couldn’t help finding the extreme solution to illegal immigration somewhat contradictory.  He wants to give illegals driver’s licenses, which would be incentives for them to stay. Then he wants to establish an embargo on Mexico, which would cripple their economy and give them incentive to emigrate from there, most likely to the US. This would make the illegal immigrants want to stay in Mexico? He has since clarified further that he means no harm to the families of immigrants suffering poverty. “I mean with the full cooperation of their families back home.  A kind of civil disobedience.  And the idea is for somebody in charge to “sting” a few corrupt police in the locales where my friend lives and get the ball rolling.  Word spread that ‘the times they are a changing’ and that the whole world is watching.  WE would be watching if there was this boycott.” However, the question still stuck out in my mind.

And while I’m usually good at shrugging off criticism, something about this particular “up yours” to the media struck me personally. I decided to find Mr. Stein and give him some of the media attention that had seemingly eluded him for quite some time. Besides getting some satisfaction by proving Mr. Stein wrong in his belief that the media didn’t cover him, I was also curious to find out more about his actual campaign platform, the morale at Stein HQ, and the method behind the madness that his website, peppered with alt-rock band bios, personal stories from the Mexican border, and an exhaustive analysis of his longstanding feud with liberal blog DailyKos.

What I found is a man with a profound expertise on his topic of choice—illegal immigration from Mexico—using every tool in the democratic toolbox to get his message across (Stein ran for Congress in 2008 and is planning another run in 2010). He’s not much of a politician, and even less of a candidate, by his own admission. Even he admits that if voters are thinking of the election with a horserace mentality, there is no real compelling reason to vote for him. “You’ve got to have real leadership qualities for that; I don’t have those” he deadpans when asked if he feels ready to be CEO of a state. His strengths do not lie within the scope of crude bureaucratic skill, he explains, but with a surplus of what most frontrunners, Democrat Jon Corzine particularly, suffer a major lack of: passion for one of New Jersey’s major problems. New Jersey is one of the states in which the impact of illegal immigration, especially from Mexico, can be most felt. The Star-Ledger ran a piece this week detailing the woes of undocumented persons in the state, which found the problem to be coming from both criminals who cross the border illegally and racist citizens who taken their frustration out on minorities violently.

Here is the interview in ten parts, divided by subject matter:

Part 1: Stein talks about how he defines his partisanship, admits that experiences harboring illegal immigrants have shaped his political stance.

Part 2: Stein elaborates on his illegal immigration plan, I question him on the effectiveness of the plan

Part 3: Stein on campaigning for governor: “I’m not trying to win anything”

Part 4: Stein has some bones to pick with DailyKos, Bill O’Reilly, and sees himself as the real Joe the Plumber

Part 5: Stein responds to questions about New Jersey’s latest corruption scandals

Part 6: Stein supports a repeal of the 13th Amendment to keep illegal immigrants from bearing US citizens. [ed. note- while the 13th Amendment actually repeals slavery, it is clear that Stein's repeated mention of the 13th Amendment is a numerical error. The 14th Amendment is the one which gives citizenship rights to all born in America.]

Part 7: Stein proposes single-payer insurance coverage, and plans to pay for it by dissolving cabinet positions.

Part 8: A rapidfire round on social issues pressing for NJ voters.

Part 9: Stein confesses an affinity for the Little Guy. And, no, Chris Daggett doesn’t count.

Part 10: On a Stein gubernatorial administration: “You need real leadership qualities for that- I don’t have those!”

Thanks again to Mr. Stein for sitting down with us for an extensive interview. For more information on his project (or some Neil Young cover bands), please visit his website, Steinforgovernor.com.

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